Six Flags Magic Mountain spills plans for record-setting coaster

The new Full Throttle launch coaster debuting in 2013 at Six Flags Magic Mountain reportedly will feature a vertical loop taller than the park's own Viper (shown).

The new Full Throttle launch coaster debuting in 2013 at Six Flags Magic Mountain reportedly will feature a vertical loop taller than the park's own Viper (shown). (Six Flags)

Brady MacDonaldLos Angeles Times

Six Flags Magic Mountain is expected to add a terrain-hugging launched roller coaster in 2013 featuring the world's tallest loop, according to an employee who wasn't authorized to speak on behalf of the amusement park.

A Magic Mountain mechanic inadvertently revealed closely guarded facts about the record-setting attraction while casually talking with a group of coaster enthusiasts during the recent West Coast Bash event at the Valencia amusement park. Details of the conversation quickly appeared on the Theme Park Review website and rapidly spread through the online coaster community.

Full Throttle's record-setting vertical loop is expected to top the Superman: Krypton coaster at Six Flags Fiesta Texas, which holds the current title of world's tallest loop at 145 feet. Magic Mountain's own Viper, with a 144-foot-tall loop, is a close second, according to Roller Coaster Database.

Magic Mountain recently shuttered the 1971 Log Jammer water flume to make way for the 2013 coaster. The wooded six-acre parcel in the center of the park includes a sizable man-made lake that may play a role in the new attraction. Full Throttle may also make use of the old monorail tunnel that cuts through the hillside.

Magic Mountain officials declined to comment on the specifics of the mechanic's revelations, saying only that the park does not respond to rumors or speculation. An official announcement on the new 2013 attraction will be made in late summer.

Full Throttle would become Magic Mountain's 18th coaster, moving the California park ahead of Ohio's Cedar Point for the title of "Roller Coaster Capital of the World."